He compared him to one of hip-hop’s most respected MCs. “Kendrick is like our West Coast Nas, so to speak–lyrically amazing,” he said, while warning other rappers not to mess with him. “I hope no one ever beefs or tries to attack him lyrically. You will definitely lose. His mind is crazy.” Kendrick reminds him of someone else from Compton. “His career is real reminiscent of my early start, minus the bandana. Kendrick is neutral in this. That’s our West Coast Nas and everyone should support that.” (Rap-Up)

The former G-Unit member has even lashed out at rapper Shyne after he labeled Lamar’s new studio debut “trash.”

“Whenever a shot is taken at Kendrick, I think that’s the pool I’ma dive in head-first, whether there is water there or not,” Game said in an interview. “Personally, I think Shyne should just back away and let the kid breathe and if not, I don’t know, we might find ourselves face-to-face or sh– that nobody really wants to see happen. Kendrick is non-confrontational, he’s not a thug, he’s not a gang banger, he’s just a dope, hip-hop lyricist, but he’s from the streets and he got a lot of ties out here and a lot of good hood n—as with him and I’m one of them.” (MTV)

“If Shyne ever make it bac to the states…somebody tell cuz his west coast pass is revoked.,” he tweeted. (Nipsey Hussle’s Twitter)

Hate it or love it, Lamar’s new LP is en route to flirt with up to 250,000 sold copies in its opening week.

NEXT WEEK’S TOP 15: A big part of our job, these days, is coming up with new ways to think about how many records Taylor Swift is selling. So grok this: This week, Big Machine’s big Red monster will likely sell more than the rest of the Top 50 albums combined. It may, in fact, have the biggest opening since 2005, when 50 Cent‘s The Massacre lived up to its name with a 1.14m bow. It’s also due for the second-largest first week ever for a female artist, trailing only Britney Spears‘ massive “Oops … I Did It Again,” which opened with 1.319m way back in 2000. Here’s how the field looks with the weekend looming: * Taylor Swift (Big Machine) 1.15-1.25m * Kendrick Lamar (Aftermath/Interscope) 235-245k (HDD)